Exchange 2016 Install Error 'Skipping creating Discovery Arbitration Mailbox because of insufficient permission"

KB ID 0001221

Problem

Note: Can also be seen on Exchange 2013.

While installing a new Exchange 2016 Server into a clients Exchange 2010 infrastructure last week, the setup failed with the following error.

A cutdown version of the error;

          Write-ExchangeSetupLog -Info ("Cannot find E-discovery arbitration mailbox with name=$name.");
          }
          }
          else
          {
          write-exchangesetuplog -info "Skipping creating Discovery Arbitration Mailbox because of insufficient permission."
          }
          }
        " was run: "Microsoft.Exchange.Data.DataValidationException: Database is mandatory on UserMailbox.
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Configuration.Tasks.Task.ThrowError(Exception exception, ErrorCategory errorCategory, Object target, String helpUrl)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Configuration.Tasks.Task.WriteError(Exception exception, ErrorCategory category, Object target, Boolean reThrow)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Configuration.Tasks.DataAccessTask`1.Validate(TDataObject dataObject)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Configuration.Tasks.SetTaskBase`1.InternalValidate()
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Configuration.Tasks.SetRecipientObjectTask`3.InternalValidate()
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Management.Common.SetMailEnabledRecipientObjectTask`3.InternalValidate()
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Management.RecipientTasks.SetUserBase`3.InternalValidate()
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Management.RecipientTasks.SetMailboxBase`3.InternalValidate()
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Management.RecipientTasks.SetMailbox.InternalValidate()
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Configuration.Tasks.Task.b__b()
   at Microsoft.Exchange.Configuration.Tasks.Task.InvokeRetryableFunc(String funcName, Action func, Boolean terminatePipelineIfFailed)".

Click for the full Error.

Solution

This error is about arbitration mailboxes, so let’s have a look at those, (on my Exchange 2010 server, in the Exchange Shell).

Get-Mailbox –Arbitration | Select Name,Database

As you can see I’ve got a system mailbox that is not attached to any database, (the one with the yellow error under it). So I simply need to associate that with a mailbox database.

Set-Mailbox ‘{mailbox}’ –Database {Exchange-2010-Database} –Arbitration